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SHO WCA SE
Open College o the Arts
2009 No. 3
Cover story continued...3Student: SarahScales - The ThirdWay 4 & 5 Tutor: Jim Unsworth- Elephants asmetaphor6 & 7
Inside
One o the joys o the OCA is that there is never aslack period. Unlike traditional education, whichpulls down the blinds in July and decamps untilthe autumn, our students continue to start newcourses and complete existing courses twelvemonths o the year. The one annual cycle is theproduction o a new Guide to Courses. Even inthe web age, many people and institutions stillrely on a paper prospectus and this is our annualopportunity to set out our stall. It is one we takeseriously because we know that, or example, aGuide in a busy public library could be consultedmany times.So what has changed and what does this say about the way the OCA is changing? Firstly, allo the courses in the new guide are accredited. They all orm part o a pathway to a qualication. This is not because we are against learning orpersonal development. Absolutely not. As anearlier Secretary o State or Education, DavidBlunkett, once said:‘
[learning]...helps us ulfl our potential and opensdoors to a love o music, art and literature. That iswhy we value learning or its own sake..
.’We want to oer progression, opportunities todevelop skills and creativity that we can support over time to enable students to fourish.
Gareth Dent, Chie Executive refects on18 months in post 
Continued on page 3...
 
2
Showcase
is published by the Open College o the Arts.
Open College o the Arts
 The Michael Young Arts Centre,Unit 1B, Redbrook Business ParkWilthorpe Road, Barnsley S75 1JN Telephone: 01226 730495Email: enquiries@oca-uk.comWeb: www.oca-uk.comRegistered charity no: 327446Company limited by guarantee no:2125674OCA welcomes contributions toShowcase but reserves the right to edit materials at its discretion. Views and opinions expressed inShowcase are not necessarily thoseo OCA, nor does the inclusion o an item, insert or advertisement constitute a recommendation. To amend your contact details or togive eedback – please contact DeeWhitmore, Marketing and Events,on 01226 704364 oremail: deewhitmore@oca-uk.com
 Andrew Watson
 Andrew joined the OCA in April 2009 asDirector o Development. He will be workingwith Gareth Dent on strategic planning,and helping to push orward developmentssuch as the prisoneducation project unded by theLankelly ChaseFoundation. Hewill also takea particularinterest in musicprovision (alongside Course Leader PatricStandord), as he is both a harpsichordist and (aspiring!) jazz pianist. Andrew’s CV includes experience with the voluntary sector (working with homeless alcoholics),the public sector (a ormer local authority Education Ocer and Careers Adviser)and the private sector (consultant withPricewaterhouse Coopers and as director o his own business).
Kathy Petts
Kathy joined the OCA on a temporary 8week contract in 1991, packing the guideto courses (it was all doneby hand backthen). 18 yearslater she isan invaluablemember o theullment teamas warehousemanager.Kathy has two children and has recently become a grandmother. Her interestsinclude reading, walking and exotic petsincluding snakes, bearded dragons, spidersand crazy cats.
Who’s who at OCA Success by degrees
 The OCA would like to congratulate the latest students ontheir degree success:BA Honours in Creative Arts
 Joan Barker:
•
First Class Honours
 Valerie Rath
•
: Second Class Honours (upper division)
Parthenopi Mouskatou Christodoulidou
•
: SecondClass Honours (lower division)
 Anthony Hobbs
•
: Second Class Honours (lowerdivision)BA in Creative Arts
Caroline Hockley 
•
Speaking about her achievement 
 Joan Barker 
said:“
I have been studying with the Open College o the Arts since 2004. I am absolutely delighted to have achieved this award. It would not havebeen possible without the support o the OCAtutors. I would like to thank Rhonda Fenwick and  John Cartmel Crossley (sadly deceased) or their  guidance and encouragement. I ound the work I produced under their tutorage both ascinatingand progressive. I am just so thrilled.
”
 The graduation ceremony will take placeat Buckinghamshire New University, HighWycombe on Monday 7thSeptember 
 
Continued rom cover...
For this reason we have widened the range o level onephotography courses, introducing People and Place as a successulnew course which leads directly into our level 2 Landscape andSocial Documentary photography. It is why we have added DigitalFilm at level 1. It is also why we have added Visual Studies to theart history stream and why we will add Illustration to the ne art courses later this year.Secondly, we are reviewing and updatingcourses, ensuring the content isrelevant to today’s learners.Nowhere is this more obviousthan in our composing musiccourses. Quietly, and withar less anare thanin photography, thebusiness o composingmusic has changed.No longer is it thepreserve o a tousle hairedindividual at a grand pianowith sheets o manuscript paper, rather the keyboardhas replaced the keys and thescore can be emailed to thetutor, listened to, tweaked andreturned. Equally radically thenature o music has changed and akey component o the course is that it recognises that intendedoutput may be a short piece to support a video on YouTube or Vimeo rather than a symphony. The third change is even lessobvious when ficking through the pages o the Guide. We arenow working ar more closely with our tutors. New course leadersassist the head oce team to understand what works and what doesn’t and what tutors need to ensure students can get the best out o their courses. Course leaders are also increasingly activein the OCA student orums, clariying points or students andprovoking thought around the courses.Emphasising the changes has the danger o appearing to say everything needs to change. Yet there is a powerul case orcontinuity, since the OCA still provides - now as ever - a highly fexible way or students to develop their creativity and skills.Nowhere is that more evident than in the work chosen to illustratethe guide, some o which is reproduced here. The OCA head oceis a strange place, oddly distant rom the experience o artisticendeavor, and yet three times a year when work arrives orassessment it becomes like an oasis in the desert ater the rain, aswork o outstanding quality emerges rom the packing materials.We know how good our student work is and that doesn’t change. You will however be seeing more o it over the coming months.
 
Detail o a piece by 
Penelope Stevenson
Detail rom a photograph by 
Shirley Plowright 
 3
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